15.6.06

heal thyself

I'm starting to learn the Otzar Hayim (the cache of life) by the Komarna Rebbe. My Rav gave it to us for our wedding. The Rebbe from Komarna is truly amazing but I'm not going to get into it now. (Suffice it to say that he had divine revellation (ruah haKodesh -- in short he was aware of everything that had ever happened and everything that ever would) from age 3 to age 7 before his uncle 'took it away' so that he could grow up like a 'normal' child.)

Back to the point of this post: He writes in his introduction to the sefer Notzer Hesed that he wanted to rectify the 248 limbs and 365 sinews of his body so that he would be without flaw. (Because everyone knows God's divine presence, the shechinah, doesn't rest on anyone or in any place that is 'flawed') His book, the Otzar Hayim is the expression of this goal. Describing each of the 613 mitzwoth (248 positive and 365 negative) in their four various levels of meaning: PaRDeS (Pshat - literal, Remez - hint, Drash - allegorical, Sod - secret) he shows the way in which we may properly perform all of them, and so, purify our bodies from any and all damage. Thereby allowing our bodies to receive the divine presence, the shechinah. In so doing we fulfill the personal expression of the passage "and I will dwell among them." It didn't occur to me until this morning that we are, each of us, individually experiencing a microcosm of the global exile. As long as I or anyone else hasn't yet completely perfected their own flaws, we haven't done all we can to bring about the redemption. Further, that a personal redemption awaits for any willing to pursue it. Hence the statement that Tzaddikim (Righteous) are constantly living in the time of the Moshiah (Messiah)

There's a direct link here to the idea of the king being one who acts. The performance of the mitzwoth as actions, speech, and thought bring about the revellation of God as King of all creation. This is why the sphere (sephirah) of malchuth/kingship is related to David, who always acted with the intent to reveal God in the world. This is also why there is such a push for the performance of mitzwoth amongst those in the know, and this is also why it's been ok until now for people to study only the revealed torah and perfect their mitzwah performance without being tied to the deeper spirit of the law.[my thoughts are a little scattered right now and I'm not holding to Rebbe Nachman's maxim of not revealing too many of your thoughts lest you be engulfed by the makif(pun partially intended i guess)--but I hope some of this is clear enough.]